7 February 2007
After several months of negotiation, Eastbourne Borough Council and East Sussex County Council have reached agreement on the new on-street parking scheme for the centre of the town and the seafront. The Borough argued for significant concessions to make the arrangements as easy as possible to understand and to ease the introduction of the new parking zones and charges.
The agreement sees a reduction in the costs of parking against those originally proposed, and important reductions in the costs of permits for people who need their vehicles with them when they work, such as builders, care workers and estate agents.
Cllr Ian Lucas, Leader of Eastbourne Borough Council, said: "There is widespread consensus that parking in the town centre is a mess at present and this will only get worse without effective enforcement. The Council can only help with this by signing up to a parking scheme. However the initial proposals went too far and were too expensive. I am delighted that we have been able to reduce these charges and thus make the scheme much more acceptable to local people. Initially, the size of the charging zone will be halved and the charges dramatically reduced."
The new parking scheme will mean:
Shoppers will pay just 20p for the first 15 minutes, allowing them to pop in and out of town very easily.
Tradespeople; will pay £2 a day to park in the town for their work, and even less if they buy an annual permit.
Delivery drivers: will not have to pay when they are loading and unloading.
Town Centre Residents: will only have to pay £25 a year to park a vehicle on street.
The changes have received support from key organisations in the town:
Steven Goss-Turner, President of Eastbourne and District Chamber of Commerce said: "We have been involved in discussions with both the County and Borough Councils about this scheme, and we are still engaged in consultation on specifics. Whilst our members are still very cautious about what the effect of the scheme will be, we are pleased that both Councils have listened to our concerns and are changing the scheme to make business permits cheaper and shareable."
To reflect the Chamber of Commerce’s concerns, the permit for traders will be priced at £500 a year which will cover all zones; this charge will be set for the first 18 months. These permits can be shared between several vehicles as long as they are only used in a single vehicle at any one time.
Ian Millar, Chairman of the Eastbourne Hospitality Association, said: "Our members will be watching the introduction of charging on the seafront with great interest. Hoteliers will be able to purchase books of vouchers to allow guests to park in the controlled zones at a discounted rate."
Lesley Goble, Chief Executive of Eastbourne Association of Voluntary Services, said: "We have been involved in detailed discussions with the Borough Council and the County Council on this new scheme and have recently undertaken a survey to identify the main areas of concern.
Whilst we welcome the changes that have been made to it we still have concerns about how important services will be delivered to vulnerable people within the parking zone. These are predominantly around the voluntary organisations that rely on a large number of volunteers and those whose work means that there are a number of staff making home visits.
I hope that this process continues to ensure that the people of Eastbourne do not lose valuable services because Charities are unable to cover the parking costs for their staff and volunteers. I would urge continued dialogue and, in particular, direct consultation with the groups most affected."
Hyde Gardens, Cornfield Road, Gildredge Road and Lushington Road, will be charged at the rate that currently applies in Hyde Gardens. The rest of the existing Controlled Parking Zone has been reduced from £2 an hour to £1 an hour.
Cllr Ian Lucas added: "I would like to thank everyone for their input so far and confirm that we are committed to a continuing dialogue with the voluntary sector and business community whilst the details of the scheme are being put in place."
Charging outside the current CPZ will not be introduced until the end of detailed street by street consultation. Charging in these areas will start at 80p for the first hour.
The scheme is set to go live in October 2007.
